Mosquitoes Associated with Water Lettuce (Pistia Stratiotes) in Southeastern Florida

Abstract

Emergence traps monitored weekly for three years were used to describe the mosquito fauna associated with water lettuce and their abundances and phenology in a drainage canal and a borrow pit in St. Lucie County, Florida. Mansonia dyari, M. titillans, and Culex erraticus accounted for, respectively, 89.7%, 6.2%, and 1.5% of 45,932 adult specimens identified. Eleven other mosquito species were regarded as incidental. Spring emergences of M. dyari and M. titillans were followed by several overlapping generations between May and December. A decrease in emergence of these species during January and February was associated with colder water temperatures and plant mortality. The proportions of M. dyari and M. titillans emerging in traps and occurring as larvae on water lettuce roots were similar, but females of the latter species were captured relatively more often at a blood source.